Patriots Hold Off Ravens, 23-20, Win AFC Championship

Winslow Townson/Getty Images(FOXBOROUGH, Mass) — The New England Patriots are headed to Super Bowl 46 in Indianapolis after escaping Foxborough with a 23-20 win.

The Ravens had an opportunity to win the game with seconds remaining but Lee Evans was unable to pull in a pass from Joe Flacco. The failed opportunity led to kicker Billy Cundiff missing a game-tying 32-yard field goal wide left with 11 seconds left which sent Baltimore packing.

“It’s a kick I’ve kicked probably a thousand times in my career,” Cundiff said. “I went out there and didn’t convert. That’s the way things go. There’s really no excuse for it.”

Patriots’ quarterback Tom Brady was far from perfect but his one-yard dive into the end zone with 11:29 left proved to be the game winner.

“It’s incredible, you watch this game as a kid growing up, I was a 49er fan so I got to watch a lot of Super Bowls,” said Brady. “You pinch yourself to get this opportunity and privilege to be a part of an incredible organization, to play with a great group of teammates; it’s really a privilege to play quarterback on this team.”